The Diocese on the Niger Women, Anambra State, commenced their annual conference, Thursday, July 11, 2024, with a call for Nigerians to shun excessive pursuit of worldly things and instead to embrace godly coexistence.
Nigerians were also urged to develop a good level of contentment, as well as be ready to serve God, the nation and fellow citizens, with the reassurance that irrespective of the nation’s short comings, that God still desired Nigerians a prominent place in heaven.
The Diocesan Bishop, Rt Rev Dr Owen Nwokolo, made the appeal in the homily he delivered to mark the commencement of the conference at St Mark’s Anglican Church, Omagba, Onitsha.
He condemned what he described as excessive pursuit of materialism, explaining that inordinate ambition for earthly things would block one’s way of responding to divine direction and control which he said was capable of disposing one to having a seared conscience.
The Bishop warned that human desires should be diligently guided, adding that selfish desires usually triggered passion for inordinate earthly cravings.
He, therefore, appealed that people should rather aspire to hold on to God’s desires, goals and aspirations than the pursuit of their own selfish interests.
According to him, the love of worldly things is equivalent to the love of evil in the world, the love and practice of obnoxious customs and traditions and anti-human belief systems, immorality and ungodly lifestyles
“These things are capable of constraining one a-religious, inhibiting the person from loving God and humility, “he explained.
To the bishop, “Any one who has determined to worship God must do some necessary counselling of self”, the task of which he said was jettisoning of the love of worldly things.
Citing 1 John 2:15, the bishop said, “Do not love the world, neither the things that are in it, for whoever loves the world does not have the love of the Father in him”.
He however said that the major thing that could prevent one from loving God and fellow human beings was the love of worldly things.
While counseling parents on the right way to raise their children, Bishop Nwokolo said that as good parents they should train their children in the genuine worship of God and proper direction towards the tradition of divine brotherhood.
He expressed great worries in situations where he said some parents were found to be godly but their children wallowed in utter spiritual and moral darkness, adding that bringing the youths closer to God would help cultivate brotherly love for fellow Nigerians, thereby dousing the current waves of insecurity in the country.
“By so doing, both parents and children would value the worth of human life and develop the love of God and appreciate worshipping God with all they have”, he emphasized.
